Dragon's Honor - Kij Johnson [22]
“Astounding!” the Dragon declared. At first Picard thought he was referring to the apparent attempt at murdering one of them; then he saw that the Dragon looked more interested in the golden-skinned android. “He moved so quickly! What manner of being is this?”
“Lieutenant Commander Data is a sentient artificial life-form,” Picard explained quickly. He could understand the Dragon’s curiosity—Data was a singularly unique individual—but he wanted to get to the bottom of this dart business as soon as possible. Were the G’kkau responsible somehow, or was this merely the result of some internal intrigue between the Pai themselves? Either way, it boded ill for his mission.
“A mechanism?” the Dragon said.
Picard nodded. “And a valued member of my crew.”
“A mechanism of great value indeed,” the Dragon agreed. He winked at Picard, grinning broadly through his beard. “Your Federation was wise to send him.”
“So it would appear.” Picard felt like he was missing something important in this exchange, but he was anxious to divert the Dragon from his apparent fixation on Data. “Excellence, might I call your attention to this rather disturbing incident?”
“Oh that,” said the Emperor, sounding mildly annoyed at the intrusion of such an uninteresting subject into the conversation. “What about it?”
“According to Commander Data, the device he captured appeared to be a miniaturized flying syringe, probably remote-controlled. I wouldn’t doubt that the tip was poisoned.”
“Poison?” the Second Son exclaimed. He seemed genuinely stunned by the notion.
“What an appalling notion,” the Dragon-Heir said. “Only a foreigner could conceive of such a thing.”
The Dragon shook his head. “Really, Picard, I appreciate your concern, but I fear you are making too much of this. This little toy must be a prank, nothing more.”
“A prank, Your Excellence?” Picard was puzzled by the Dragon’s obvious lack of concern.
“What else?” the Emperor said jovially. “Why, I have it! One of my Heir’s many friends could not wait for the formal banquet to conclude before launching the evening’s rowdier festivities. No doubt the dart, if that’s what it was, was tipped with some mild intoxicant or aphrodisiac. A bit premature, while we old men are still around, but nothing you need worry about.”
“Are you sure about that, Excellence?” Riker asked. “Such an advanced weapon, just to deliver a love potion. That seems a bit … extreme.”
“Oh, no!” laughed Kan-hi. “It’s quite common at parties, and it would take strong dose of something to get my brother to loosen up.”
“Silence!” the Dragon-Heir snapped, glowering at his younger brother. “Have you no respect for anything?”
“Not for a loveless marriage of convenience,” Kanhi said. “The Green Pearl deserves better than the likes of you.” Picard was struck once more by the obvious enmity between the Dragon’s two sons. He also noted that Lu Tung, the bride’s father, remained silent throughout this exchange. What did he think of his daughter’s future husband, not to mention the assassination attempt? Did Lu Tung intend to capture by stealth what he had failed to conquer by force?
“That is enough,” the Dragon commanded. “You bicker like old women in front of our honored guests. My apologies, Captain Picard.”
“No apologies are necessary,” Picard said diplomatically. “Yet I would not dismiss this matter of the dart so lightly. How can you be sure that the weapon was genuinely poisoned?” He wished the missile had not destroyed itself so quickly. Dr. Crusher’s tricorder could have determined in minutes the nature of the toxin contained by the dart. “For safety’s sake, isn’t it worth